Public works yards set to relocate - Transit Centre on Upper James is overcrowded

The city’s public works Mountain Transit Center located on Upper James Street is overcrowded with buses and a new home needs to be found soon, says the general manager of transit.

But finding better accommodations for transit’s vehicles is only the first phase contemplated in the department’s master plan, as staff outlined this week. Other proposals include relocating its bus fleet from its Wentworth yard to Burlington Street; consolidating the city’s Ancaster’s transit operations to a new facility in the Ancaster Industrial Park; relocate roads operations from the Binbrook Yard to Tapleytown Yard; consolidate the city’s water and wastewater operations from Wentworth, Stoney Creek and Dundas to Brampton Street; and centralize the Dundas roads and parks operations from the Dundas Driving Park to the Dundas Yard.

“Frankly, we would not like to do this, but it is unavoidable,” said Don Hull, director of transit.

Mr. Hull pointed out that at the Mountain Transit Center, there are 266 buses in a building designed to hold 200. “We are overcapacity in every area,” said Mr. Hull. “DARTS are operating out of trailers. The facility is totally inadequate.”